Finding Hope: Psalm 62:5

Hope is everything in a world full of chaos. And I trust in God that his love will flow through the world. I hope that people will feel the love and receive it, sharing kindness and blessings. I hope that it will heal all wounds, and bring fresh waves of kindness and mercy towards our fellow humans. I have hope that things will get better, even if only in my own small corner of the world, and if I can make a difference here, maybe that kindness will spread, that hope will spread, and people will be more joyful, friendly, and forgiving of one another.

Faith - Matthew 21:21

That doesn’t mean everything in life will be easy, with rainbows and unicorns every day. It means that when things get really tough, my faith carries me through. It means that when things are really good, I have faith that I can thank someone for watching over me. It means that when things are complicated, I can take time to pause, pray, and have faith that things will get better.

Gone Creating!

On vacation for April — let me know what you’d like me to write about!

encouragement, creativity, goal setting, Rest, tipsJackie ScottApril 6, 2025Rest, Creativity, Taking a Break

Progress over Perfection

The one thing about creativity that you have to be careful about, is seeking perfection. There is too much of a temptation to try to make the perfect hat, the perfect painting, the perfect loaf of bread.

Perfection doesn’t exist.

If we strive for perfection, all we’re going to get in the end is stressed, and that’s counterintuitive to creativity.

Growing Up Without Religion

Growing up as a kid in a household that didn’t go to church, the only training I received about Christianity were the Davey and Goliath Easter specials or when Linus would read the passage from Luke in the Charlie Brown Christmas special. Religion wasn’t a focus for us.

In Grade 3 we were given a copy of the Gideon’s New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs. I remember the little red book; it was like a rite of passage, because I got one like my sister did when she was in that grade. I’m pretty sure they stopped doing that not long afterwards, probably around the same time they also stopped saying the Lord’s Prayer in school.

So really, when I was growing up, the only comparison to God we had was Santa Claus. Don’t take that sacrilegiously or anything, we were kids, and that’s the closest we could think of. Here was someone who could see what you did all year, knew whether you were being good or bad even though you couldn’t see them, and if you were good rewarded you with something you wanted. I suppose that is a pretty simple comparison, easy enough for a child to understand. There would be talk on the playground of those who did and didn’t believe in Santa, and often those who did believe had to keep it quiet.

devotional, faith, encouragement, hopeJackie ScottMarch 24, 2025faith, Christmas Faith, faith journey, God's Love

Learn the Rules

Learn the rules like a pro to break them like an artist (Picasso)

I love to know the rules. Not just in games, but in everything. I like to know what the rules are, so I know where I can stretch them.

creativity, encouragement, tipsJackie ScottMarch 17, 2025Learn the Rules, Crochet, weird laws in Canada

Finding Time to Finish Projects

When it comes to creative projects I’ve been able to spend blissful hours (or chunks of an hour) working away on one thing, whether it is putting words on pages, making pottery, cutting and prepping fabric for a quilt, or crocheting something. That deep focused time, where I’m working on just one thing at a time has been a sweet refuge for my spirit. But how do I find time to finish my project(s)?

I’m really glad you asked.

One of the things I did take from both working on my degree and my office job, where I had to balance so many projects at once, was to work backwards from a deadline. There are many different project management theories and steps on how to do things, but this is what works for me

The Woman at the Well

If it wasn’t for this testimony in John 4 about the Woman at the Well, I likely wouldn’t be writing this devotional. I likely wouldn’t consider myself saved at all.

How could someone like me, who fell for every lie that was told to her, who denied her true self to believe the lies of others, be worthy of saving? Not that I thought I needed anyone to save me — I could save myself! What did I need anyone else for?

That is what I thought until I read this story, where Jesus sat in in the heat of the noon day sun beside a well in Samaria. He was there alone while the disciples went to go find some food. He sat and waited for someone he knew would be there.

The Woman at the Well.

CAUTION: Making Pottery is Addictive!

The beauty of working with clay, is that the possibilities are virtually endless. The lump of clay can become anything you want it to be, if you treat it carefully and with respect.

Pottery, Resources, tips, creativityJackie ScottFebruary 24, 2025pottery, encouragement, creativity, creative practiceComment

Embarrassed to Admit: I Still Hesitate to Ask Questions

Everyone has questions. Sometimes we don’t know which questions to ask, because we don’t know what we don’t know yet. Or how to phrase the question to get the answer we’re actually looking for. Have you experienced that, too? We just don’t know what to ask because we’re so new, we’re drinking in all the instructions and trying to see how everything fits together. Learning is an amazing thing, but it can be difficult and frustrating.

creativity, encouragement, Fear, hope, Resources, tipsJackie ScottFebruary 17, 2025hesitate to ask questions, feeling embarrassed, don't be afraid, ask questionsComment

Am I Too Young or Too Old To Start Something Creative?

People often wonder if they are too old or too young to start a new hobby. I know I’ve been told on many occasions I was either too young or too old to do something. Neither situation was true.

When are we ever the right age for something?

Right now. It’s the best time to start.

I’ve heard the Chinese proverb “the best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The next best time to plant a tree is today.” The same is true with any creative pursuit.

Creativity is Passion in Action

You may want a piece of art for your wall, a nice abstract swooshy thing, but can’t quite find the one that matches your decor. Pick up a canvas and some paint, and see what happens. It probably won’t look the way you want it to at first, but that’s okay — the beauty of canvas and paint is that you can paint over what you don’t like and start again. (Just wait for the paint to dry first.)

creativity, encouragement, tipsJackie ScottFebruary 3, 2025Creativity, Passion in Action, Sewing, Crochet

How I Made the 1,000 Tile Project

Have you ever come up with an idea you thought was great, then started working on it and realized it was going to be much bigger than you thought?

That brings me to the story behind the “1,000 Tiles Say a Single Word” piece that was part of the Potters Guild of Hamilton biennial exhibition “Next” in March 2024 at the Carnegie Gallery in Dundas, Ontario.

Turning to Prayer When Fear Seeps In

What do we do when fear seeps into our lives?

It can be such a tricky foe. Sometimes it’s quiet and subtle, like if you’re afraid of spiders and you see a spider as you walk into a room. It’s something that’s there, that we have to confront (or get the next nearest human to dispose of it for us.) The same with fears of snakes, moths, or other creatures. Those kinds of fears are normal and confrontable, if still a bit inconvenient. We see something we are afraid of, we come up with a solution, and we move forward (or around) them.

What I Learned from "The Gap and The Gain"

The “Gap” represents the space between our current reality where we are today, and where we aspire to be. If you’re always looking at where you want to be and think that you’re not there yet, you’ll always feel a sense of desperation, of lack, of not being good enough.

The “Gain”, however, is the space between where you are today and where you’ve started. That is always the most positive space to be.

From that brief description it might sound like you should never have lofty aspirational goals and should always be reminiscing about the past, but that’s not the truth of the message. Yes, look back to appreciate what you’ve accomplished as you are working towards those lofty goals, because where you are today was once a lofty unreachable goal itself.

Book Review, tips, encouragementJackie ScottJanuary 13, 2025encouragement, perspectives, the gap, the gain, the gap and the gain

How Do We Know If We're Creative?

If you’re someone who doesn’t think you’re creative and have believed that all your life, how do you know once you’ve “become” creative? Is there some sort of graduation ceremony, where someone bestows a gap and gown on you saying “Now you have earned the title of Creative.”

Nope.

No bells, whistles, gaps, gowns, or flowers.

Being creative is not a distinction that is granted upon you from other people, such as someone who you consider creative saying “yes, now you are creative.”

Being creative is a decision.

It is a mindset.

It is owning the creativity you were born with.

creativity, encouragement, hopeJackie ScottJanuary 6, 2025creativity, hope, encouragement, I Am Creative, positive mindsetComment

How to Change Your Life in 15 Minutes A Day

I became more intentional about my time. That coincided with when I heard about the 15 minutes a day writing habit through the Christian Book Academy that mentioned above. My writing productivity increased dramatically, so I decided to apply it to other things in my life. I carved out little 15 minute sessions in my day where I had extra time I could go longer if I wanted to, and got to work.

Things I've Learned from Christmas and Holiday Movies

This time of year can be difficult for many people. There are struggles of loneliness, depression, feelings of not having enough or not being enough to others. The advertising around the holidays often show “perfect” families with “perfect” dinners in “perfect” settings, and that is not the reality for most of the world.

encouragement, devotional, faith, hopeJackie ScottDecember 25, 2024Christmas, Christmas Faith, Hope in Christ, Hope, Faith, Worthy, Loved, God's Love

Reaping the Joys (and Tears) of Quilting

This verse is a reference to sowing seeds for farming; the hardship of whether the seeds will sprout, what the weather will do, whether insects or disease will blight the crop. There is much to stress and worry about and only so much you can do, so you need to have a lot of faith. But come harvest time, there is joy. Few of us farm these days so we may have lost touch with this Psalm, but it still has relevance.

Like I mentioned above, you could apply the same to quilting or other types of creative activity. When you’re quilting there’s all kinds of areas that things can go wrong:

creativity, Quilting, tips, hope, devotionalJackie ScottDecember 23, 2024encouragement, quilting, overcoming mistakes, progress not perfectionComment

How a Morning Routine Changed My Mindset

How do you like to start your day? A quiet cup of coffee in a favourite chair? A cup of tea while listening to the radio? Sitting silently and just giving your mind, body, and soul a few minutes to wake up and enjoy the morning? Or do you drag yourself out of bed at the alarm, rush to check your phone for the latest news, social media posts, emails, and scramble to get ready for work?

I used to rush and scramble every morning, but since I started a new morning routine in December 2022, I’ve been much more productive and pleasant in the morning — at least on the days I don’t miss the alarm clock.